Never Miss A House

Spelling Manor: Most Expensive House in U.S. Finally Sells

Candy Spelling–widow of TV titan Aaron Spelling and mother of Tori–has been trying to sell her famous 57,000 square-foot mansion in Los Angeles, known as “The Manor,” for years (I first wrote about it in early 2009 when the listing became public).

She refused to budge on her asking price of $150 million, which seemed a little crazy when house prices were falling all around her, but her persistence has apparently paid off. The 22-year old U.K. heiress Petra Ecclestone has reportedly decided to buy the Manor with its (in)famous gift-wrapping room and doll museum.

The whole place is just so freakin’ big, I can’t imagine living in it. Candy admitted in one interview that even she wasn’t sure how many bathrooms it has–23? Maybe 26? Something like that.

In this video tour, Candy admits that the house got so big because she didn’t understand the scale of blueprints and thought the original room sizes looked “too small” on paper. She says that Aaron put his foot down and nixed the plans for another huge wing that was going to be built on, or this place would’ve been even bigger.

I think what surprises me most about this is that I can’t imagine a young woman living in this mansion. It looks like an older person’s house to me. Can you picture 22-year old Petra…

…hanging out in this living room?

I can’t. I predict a lot of redecorating in this home’s future. She getting married in August and will be splitting her time between L.A. and London.

And Candy Spelling showing a reporter the breakfast room with the wallpaper and matching upholstery that makes me dizzy:

The house also comes with 3 kitchens, 2 swimming pools, a bowling alley, beauty salon, and parking for 100 cars. The garages should come in handy considering Petra’s dad is British billionaire and Formula One racing boss Bernie Ecclestone.

Candy and her daughter Tori had a falling out after Aaron’s death but have reportedly repaired their relationship. Did you know Tori has a new website with a section devoted to her love of decorating? It’s called EdiTORIal.

Tori is trying to sell some real estate of her own. The house she shares with hubby Dean McDermott and their kids in Encino is on the market.

It’s a much more modest abode than Candy’s, with an asking price of $3.1 million. You can see photos of Tori’s family-friendly home here.

For more information about the sale of the house, go to WSJ. To see my original post about this house with the video tour, click here.

Never Miss A House

Comments

CRAZY!!!! I can’t understand WHY a 22 y/o needs a house of that size! I mean, is she looking for media attention? I know I sound jealous (LOL) but I am not, I just can’t think of any justification for this act.

You don’t sound jealous at all, Luciane, you just sound like someone with a bit of common sense; something that was apparently missing when this ‘house’ was conceived and constructed. How a 22 yr. old thinks she could make this place a ‘home’ is beyond me.

I hate it when stubborn sellers get their price, because an uninformed (and spoiled, in this case) buyer doesn’t know how to negotiate… You could call that place, “The House that Charlies Angels and 90210 built”…

shes not thrilled…she’s retired.. after that sale and the commission off of it ,wouldnt you? lol.. i can see petra living there..all the parties.. and in a few years a few kids running round ruining a $20,000 couch..i would love to redecorate for petra..that would be a blast. that wallpaper and matchting upholstry would get burned asap.

It’s hard to imagine a 22 year old being able to buy a home like this. I think there is going to be some major renovation going on in that house too. Even if I had that much money, I wouldn’t want to own this home. It’s ridiculously big, and way too formal for my taste. I bet Candy Spelling’s realtor is like crazy happy right now!

That’s what I thought, too, Lizzy! What a ditz. When we built our house, I love reading over the blueprints during those months. Being a sewing fanatic, the blueprints were similar to a pattern for sewing. Loved every day of the build.

Is it just me, or does it seem like most huge huge houses are decorated in this style? Lots of white and gold and “French” decor. Maybe that is the general idea of opulance in the U.S., but it seems like people with that much money could have a little more creativity. I remember when I saw some of the interiors of Donald Trump’s homes and I thought they all looked like fancy, stuffy hotels.

I think I like Tori’s style much better. The Spelling mansion would be better suited for a retreat center or something. But if I had billions of dollars to spend on whatever I wanted, it might be fun to renovate a huge house. Wonder what the agent will do with her commission? 😉

Too bad money doesn’t inherently come with good taste. It’s an ugly, overdone, blown-out-of-proportion house, but you know, it nicely fits my perception of the Spelling family. They prove you can have money and still be white trash.

Why does it seem like huge mansions like these are way over the top and don’t have much style? This place is extremely ugly and I wouldn’t want to live here even if I had the money. I would much prefer a home that is nice, but not too big. I wouldn’t be surprised if Petra turned right around and put this home on the market.

I am imagining that the new owner is an altruistic soul, who, in the spirit of Jo March, is going to convert this overly large home to a better purpose–opening a school. Yes, a school called the GW Academy. GW…for the very worthy model of George Washington, you ask? Mais, non! It is the Gift Wrapping Academy.

The part where Candy didn’t understand the scale reminds me of the scene in “Zoolander” where Ben Stiller can’t grasp that the model for the school is miniature and says “What is this?! A school for ants?!!” 🙂

In Tori Spelling’s book, she says that as a child, those dolls were in her bedroom. She got a new one for every birthday and holiday, but wasn’t allowed to play with them. She was scared to sleep in her own room because of the creepy dolls and slept in her nanny’s room most nights. Who could blame her?

This house is just so over the top! Therein lies the appeal. I can’t imagine what a young woman would do with that house (I agree it doesn’t seem like it would be her style as is ) maybe it’s just a showpiece?

Well, maybe Petra Ecclestone has many plans for this house – a party mansion perhaps? Or maybe she’ll transform it into her own fashion house HQ. This 57,000 square feet palace is big enough to be Petra’s US home and office at the same time. I’ve heard the heiress will expand her fashion business to North America and plans to put up a main base somewhere in California.

OR maybe this is just one big publicity for both Petra and Candy Spelling.

Weird, weird people. The longer people have that kind of extreme wealth, the more detached from reality they become. I don’t think they have even a slight inkling that most people don’t live like them.

Can you imagine, I saw it all over the news today….her Daddy bought it for her !! She won’t even be living there full time…..WOW I think she was quoted as saying she didn’t want people to think all she did was spend money…..LOL well actually Daddy does !!! 150 K was the asking price right, wonder what they paid….

My thought process on this is if this is where she is at 22 buying an $85 million dollar house, then what’s left for her? What are going to be the highs in this girl’s life? There’s no working up to anything when your already at the very top and didn’t have to do anything but be born to this family to get there. I would be surprised if this single girl living in 57,000 square feet has the value of “worth” ingrained into her and what’s truly important. Because her dad is a billionaire she this lives extravagant life and has no need to find her herself or accomplish her own ambitions because to end up with anything less than where she is now would be a down grade. I think it’s actually quite sad and I feel sorry for this girl. Money is wonderful to have but I think it can be damaging when you are absorbed into it and defined by it. Of course, I don’t know her personally so I am only speculating. I hope I am wrong.

I have heard that Petra works hard at her chosen profession as a designer. I am hoping that this home will be used for business purposes – entertaining buyers, design studios, perhaps using the rooms to explore interior design – rather than an investment or trophy piece.

Woww….what a massive house which i think going to be very hard to become a home. But i really like this site. A lot of thanks to Julia for creating this awesome website about houses. It really gives me a lot of insight and ideas on houses and its design (interior and exterior). Regards all the way from Malaysia.

Who are you to judge what someone needs or wants. Why are most cars automatic with power windows and locks when most people have two arms? Why do we have heat and ac when only, on average, 6 days a year are life threatning? I will help with your answer and why a 22 year old needs a house this size. She doesnt, anymore than you need your ammentities. She wants them and can afford them, the same as you want the luxories in your price range. Be happy for those that can be over the top!

I think that it’s fine to have this house. It’s got a nice interior and the gardens are spacious and pretty. If she wants a house this big, she should, I hope she enjoys it. I think that the rooms are big, not that there is a lot of rooms. I would love living here – 14 bedrooms, big lounges, fancy entrance = a good place to have lots of parties and for all your friends to go “fuck this place is awesome!” I would live here if I had the money, and I know many people who say they don’t need this would definatley buy this home if they could afford it.

And these are the people Romney and Ryan think we shouldn’t tax because they are going to create jobs for all the little people. Yes, jobs cleaning their big houses for them. Wake up people, we clearly NEED some wealth redistribution in this country. What did Candy Spelling do to earn the kind of wealth she controls? Nothing. It is disgusting the lavish way that a very small percentage of our population gets to live while others are doing without the simple necessities.

Over the top for sure. Petra’s home looks like an opulent hotel. Petra is beautiful, intelligent, hard working, thoughtful, wealthy, married and expecting. She seems like a super person. The thing is, she can afford anything she wants and still have plenty of money leftover.